Page 91

We arrived at the base an hour later. Jim texted Wes while Matias texted me, both with the same message:Get down here, NOW!

And once we arrived at the gym, we put the pieces together. Matias was doing everything he could to hold Edith back while Jim was trying to wrangle Calista.

“You’re insane!” Calista screamed.

Edith raged, “What kind of bitch does that!”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” I yelled, running to Edith.

“What the fuck is going on?” Wes yelled.

Calista shrugged Jim off her. “That bitch tried to knife me!”

My eyes widened as I turned to face Edith. “For real?”

“Get off me, Matias! Or I’ll stab your ass too,” she threatened.

“Not until you calm the fuck down,” he yelled back.

“Ugh! Fine!” She stopped thrashing. “I’mcalm, see? Now let go.” Matias hesitated, but then loosened his grip just as Edith shrugged herself free from his grasp, turning to glare at him.

“Anybody want to tell me what the fuck is going on with my team four days before a mission?” The drill sergeant marched into the gym, making us all turn to face him.

It didn’t take long before Calista was spilling the beans. “That bitch knifed me,” she said as she lifted her arm and pointed out the clean cut on her bicep, a trickle of blood dripping down her porcelain skin.

“Oh come off it,” Edith shot back. “A cut is hardly me knifing you. You’d be dead, Haeflinger.” She lifted a hand, pointing a blade at Blondie that I only just now noticed. “Consider it a friendly warning,” she added with a sneer.

“You’re crazy!”

“Enough!” The drill sergeant marched forward, eyes ablaze. “Do you want to explain to me, Le, why you attacked your teammate?”

Edith grew serious, but she showed no remorse, no regret. “She had it coming, sir.”

“Really?” He said incredulously. “And why is that?”

Edith looked at me, a flicker in her gaze, before she set her sights on Calista. “Calista stuck her nose in other people’s business one too many times at the party. She knowsexactlywhat she did.”

It was all she said. In that instant, I knew Edith saw Calista’s stunt at the gala. Blondie may have tried to make pulling my shawl off look like an accident, but Edith knew better. Edith knew the whole backstory, knew Calista’s wicked nature, and she knew exactly what really happened.

Oh, Edith…She really was my best friend. I was going to miss her.

“Is that right?” the sergeant said, sarcasm lacing his voice. “Well, I don’t give a fuck about what happened at a damn party! You got that, Le? In four days, I need a team that won’t kill each other on the fucking boat before they ever leave the damn dock!”

Oh, he was pissed, and I couldn’t blame him. I’d be angry too. Of course, I would have knifed Calista last night too if given the opportunity. Today, however, was different. Everything wasdifferent. Because I needed her help, and it was going to take stuffing my pride as deep as I could to muster the ability to do it.

“You’re grounded, Le.”

“What?” Edith said.

“You’re grounded,” the sergeant repeated. “You’re off the mission.”

I stepped forward this time. “But it’s a six-person job and we don’t have time to replace her.”

“Don’t give me lip today, de la Puente. I’m not in the fucking mood. The mission will do just fine with five and I can’t riskMiss Happy Knifehere losing her shit on another teammate during the job.” He turned to face Edith and swiped the dagger from her hand. “You’re grounded. Go back to the bunkhouse, get your shit, and report back to the main office.Go.”

I turned to see Edith, fury in her expression. But just as her eyes caught mine, she gave me a weak smile, mouthedsorry, and walked out of the gym.

“As for the rest of you, the wall! Let’s go!” He yelled before blowing his whistle.